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Causing a Splash for SCIAF

Access to fresh, clean water helps to prevent the spread of disease (Photo: Sean Sprague)

Dedicated fundraisers at Our Lady and St Munn’s in Dunoon are working together to give the life saving gift of clean, safe water.

Last year, parishioners formed the AWAY Group (A Well a Year) and set themselves an ambitious fundraising target – to raise enough money to buy the SCIAF Real Gift of Water for a village each year.

In 2009, it took them just six months to reach their goal and they are on track to do it again.

The group came up with a novel way of fundriaisng to help them reach their impressive target – handing out tubes of sweeties and asking people to fill the empty tubes with 20 pence pieces once they have finished the sweets.

A spokesperson for the AWAY Group said:

“We decided to aim for a well a year because it is an achievable goal and it will make such a difference to people's lives. We take water for granted but for a lot of people, being able to get clean, safer drinking water is a matter of life or death.

"A well costs £557; that is a lot of money for just one person but as a group, it is much easier to raise enough to buy one.

“It was mentioned in the parish bulletin and we have had such a fabulous response. When people heard what we were doing they were keen to help and we have received so many donations from both within and outside the church. It has been so well supported. We put up SCIAF posters at the back of the church and brought in a water feature."